This document summarizes the consolidation and lack of economic justice facing American farmers. It notes that the number of American farms has declined sharply from 1978 to 2007. It discusses how meatpackers and agribusinesses have consolidated power, breaking cash prices for hogs while selling pork at higher prices. Dairy farm numbers in Wisconsin dropped over 600 in one year. The document calls for restoring economic justice for farmers by taking away funding from opponents, reinstating country of origin labeling, and adopting contract grower protection rules. It encourages joining the Organization for Competitive Markets to fight for these issues.

1. Where is the Justice?
Restoring Economic Justice for the
American Farmer
Presented by Joe Maxwell
November 15, 2016

2. OCM is Fighting to Stop the Extinction
of the American Farmer
According to USDA 2007 Ag Census: Total Number of Farms
0
500
1000
1500
2000
1978 1997 2002 2007
Number of American Farms
Number of
American Farms

3. “Smithfield is also solely owned by a Chinese
firm. Smithfield and the other major packers
systematically broke cash hog prices to 14-year
lows while at the same time selling pork at
higher prices.”

4. Wed Mar. 26, 2014 3:00 AM PDT

5. July 25, 2013
Dairy farm numbers drop in state
“Though Wisconsin's number of dairy cows
continues to hold steady, the state lost well
over 600 dairy farm operations in the last
year...”

6. This is Now Farming

7. You Might Be Paying Too Much for Your Chicken
Nov 3, 2016
“How chickens are priced has become a contentious topic as
the poultry industry has consolidated.”
Price per pound for whole chickens
• 10/31/16
• $1.10
• Georgia Dock
• $0.72
• Urner Barry
• $0.71
• U.S.D.A.
• composite

10. Reversal Of Anti-Trust Provisions
• 1981 Consent Decree of 1920 lifted
• Reagan Administration
– pushes efficiency model
– Conglomerate mergers are allowed in the name of
efficiency
– Reduced budgets for FTC and Department of
Justice

11. Candidate Obama
“By the time the Glass-Steagall Act was repealed in 1999,
the $300 million lobbying effort that drove deregulation
was more about facilitating mergers than creating an
efficient regulatory framework,” Mr. Obama said in a
speech on the economy at Cooper Union in New York in
March 2008.
“Instead of establishing a 21st century regulatory
framework, we simply dismantled the old one,” thereby
encouraging “a winner take all, anything goes
environment that helped foster devastating dislocations
in our economy.”

12. Concentration in Capital
The Clinton Years
• The Banking Act of 1994
• Gramm-Leach-Bliley reverses
Glass-Steagall

13. What We Get In Return
• Severe concentration of the markets
• Farmers off the land
• Businesses and wealth driven out of
our rural communities

14. Abuse of Power

17. How did it come to this?
According to USDA 2007 Ag Census: Total Number of Farms
0
500
1000
1500
2000
1978 1997 2002 2007
Number of American Farms
Number of
American Farms

18. Overcoming Myth 4: Intensive confinement is needed to
feed the world

19. It is not economic development it is
economic stagnation

20. Doesn’t Bring Home the Bacon

21. The Real Enemy
• Statement by Scott George, NCBA president during last
farm bill debate:
• “We are finding a lot of support in the halls of Congress
for repealing this if this is not fixed,” he said. “There’s a
narrow window where this issue – mandatory country-
of-origin labeling [COOL] – and the GIPSA [Grain
Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration]
language could both be addressed in this farm bill. And
they need to take advantage of it, because if they
don’t, we will literally use all of our resources to kill
this bill.”

22. Meatpackers, industry groups seek repeal
of labeling law
Posted on Fri, Jan. 31, 2014
The American Meat Institute, National
Cattleman’s Beef Association, National Chicken
Council, National Pork Producers Council,
National Turkey Federation and North American
Meat Association, as well as big meatpackers,
lobbied to have the new Farm Bill change the
country-of-origin labeling law.

23. “The centralized food system that continues to
emerge was never voted on by the people of
this country, or for that matter, the people of
the world. It is the product of deliberate
decisions made by a very few powerful human
actors. This is not the only system that could
emerge. Is it not time to ask some critical
questions about our food system and about
what is in the best interest of this and future
generations?” Bill Heffernan, Rural Sociologist

24. The Days of the Trust Busting
• 1888 (125 yrs ago) US Launches 1st Federal
Investigation of Meat Packing “Big Four” Swift
Armour Wilson Morris 45 % of U S Slaughter

25. The Jungle
• 1906 Upton Sinclair publishes “The Jungle” “In
the national capital [the Meat Packing Trust]
had power to prevent inspection of its
product, and to falsify government reports . .
. In the commercial world it . . . wiped out
thousands of businesses every year . . . .”

26. Time Line to Success
• 1890 Sherman Act
• 1914 Clayton Act
• 1920 Court Issues “Big Four” Consent Decree Entered
compelling divestiture Prohibits…. “…any contract… in
restraint of trade…” “Owning an interest in any…
stockyard… or any… market journal….” “Having an
interest in… manufacturing… food products… not
related to Meat Packing” 30 percent of US is Farmers
• 1921 Packers and Stockyard Act
• 1977 Packer Concentration reached century long low
point – 20% of U S

27. Call to Action:
• Take away our opponents illegitimate funding
– Clean up the Checkoff programs by supporting the
passage of SB 3200 and SB 3201
– Sign the letter of support

28. Call to Action:
• Fight to have this administration reinstate
Country of Origin Labeling
• Fight to have contract grower protection
GIPSA rules adopted
• Fight to have meaningful anti-predatory
practices GIPSA rules adopted

29. Call to Action:
• Join The Organization for Competitive Markets
– Membership
– Encourage your family farm organizations to join
The Organization for Competitive Markets
National Collaboration

30. You Decide